Karnali Corridor will be completed on time: CoAS Sharma

Published On: November 22, 2021 02:42 PM NPT By: Nagendra Upadhyaya

SURKHET, Nov 22: Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) General Prabhu Ram Sharma expressed his commitment to see that the seven kilometers roadway of Dullikuna-Lalibagar road section under the Karnali Corridor is completed on time.

In a meeting with Karnali Province Chief Minister Jeevan Bahadur Shahi, General Sharma said that the responsibility to complete the road construction given to the army by the federal government will be completed within the stipulated time.

About 12 kilometers of track to connect the neighboring country China in the Karnali Corridor is still yet to be completed. The responsibility of breaking the seven kilometer long rocky cliff has been handed over to the Nepal Army by the government. General Sharma said that the road to connect Humla with the national highway will be completed by the end of next year.

“The work of setting up camps and surveying the region has already started. We have decided to complete the work by the end of next year to bring the Karnali Corridor into operation,” General Sharma said. Earlier, the Nepal Army had completed the construction of the 122 kilometers road section of Khulalu-Hilsa and handed it over to the Department of Roads.

The Nepal Army has decided to complete 40 percent of the road section within the current year and the remaining work by the end of next year. The Karnali Corridor project includes the construction of 236.75 kilometers of roadway connecting Khulalu in Kalikot near the China border to Hilsa. Of the total road stretch, the responsibility to construct a 122.75 kilometers road section was handed over to the Nepal Army, citing difficulty to complete construction of the roadway.

During the meeting, Chief Minister Shahi expressed his gratitude toward the Nepal Army for their work. Stating that the army has contributed a huge role in the completion of the project, Shahi expressed his belief that the project will be completed on time. In addition, CM Shahi said that the Nepal Army has also expressed their commitment to help transport food and daily necessities to Humla that does not have access to roads yet.